Sri Lanka Capital In Line for 24/7 Water Supplies With ADB Loan

Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Sri Lanka’s capital and bordering
areas are in line for an $88 million loan from the Asian
Development Bank to boost water supplies to 24 hours.

The Asian Development Bank said the water-system upgrades
would bring seven-day around-the-clock water to the Colombo
region from six to 10 hours in some areas. Sri Lanka’s largest
city has about 1.3 million inhabitants in the metropolitan area
as rural migration has increased in recent years.

“Though 95 percent of Colombo is covered by a piped water
supply system, the distribution network was built more than 100
years ago,” Rita O’Sullivan, ADB country director for Sri
Lanka, said in a Sept. 30 statement. “It no longer fully meets
today’s needs.”

The ADB is funding $300 million or 20 percent of the $1.5
billion investment plan for water and sanitation in the greater
Colombo area. A first loan of $84 million was made in 2012, this
$88 million for water-supply modernization works is the second,
with loans for the third and fourth wastewater phases expected
in 2015 and 2016, the development bank said.